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Getting the Most out of the Bible Readings…..Try to set aside at least 15 minutes and find a place where you will be uninterrupted and not distracted. It is good to try and make it the same time each day and the same place. This isn’t always possible I know. In our house things are different at the weekend for example. Either the morning or the evening are good times….or even a lunch hour……Starbucks…?
We have produced a bookmark for the Lent series with the following outline pattern on:
Pray…. I find it helpful just to start by praying in tongues. When we pray in tongues our spirits are communing directly with God.
In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will. – Romans 8:26-27
It lifts us to a different level and makes us spiritually alert. We might then confess some sins or other barriers that get between us and God.
It is good to ask the author of the book (the Holy Spirit) to let you know what he had in mind when it was written. The Holy Spirit is more than able to help.
"I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. 13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. 14 He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. 15 All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you. – John 16:12-15
This can be a very simple prayer…
Read…. Get a version of the Bible you are happy with…. NIV, TEV, NET, Living Bible, etc. Down load an audio version or an iPhone app….? If you are very used to one translation such as the NIV why not use a different one for this Lent to freshen things up a bit?
Read slowly. It can be helpful to read the passage through once and then go back a read it again once you have a sense of it. Consider that each line is God speaking to you!
Don’t assume you know what the story is about…. Often God can open a familiar passage in a very different way if we are open.
Stop if anything catches your attention. Don’t be afraid to underline or highlight bits that speak to you… Think…. Can you imagine yourself into the story….where is Jesus, what is he doing, what is his expression, what does it feel like, what is everyone doing, thinking, saying???? What does it look like?
Is there some odd detail which seems a bit of an add-on to the story – it is there for a reason!
If you get stuck try reading the passage in a different translation. Or get a decent commentary. Sometimes we do need to wrestle with it – it will mean more to us at the end and we are unlikely to forget it!!
It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings. – Proverbs 25:2
Write…. Write down anything you don’t understand….we can all discuss it later on. Write down what you take away from the passage, any insights or thoughts that were initiated by the passage? Write down anything that you feel the Lord telling you to do via the passage. Write out the key verse so you can remember it.
Respond…. Normally this is via a prayer… Turn the passage into a prayer.
Lord you are amazing, that was brilliant! – that’s a prayer of praise! Lord, thank you for coming to find me! – that’s a prayer of thanks! Lord, help me to be more loving! – that’s an asking prayer! Agree before God to some course of action…
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